PLAINFIELD — State Sen. Jennifer Bertino-Tarrant (D-Shorewood) issued the following statement after the governor signed Senate Bill 2059 into law, which provides short-term funding for public universities, community colleges and Monetary Award Program grants that help middle-class students afford college:

I’m grateful that the governor has signed the legislature’s bipartisan proposal that will keep state universities open and provide grants to students who need help affording college. But there is more work to do moving forward. We need a long-term solution that protects our students and universities from being held hostage by the impasse in Springfield. I’m also hoping that the governor and legislature will work in a bipartisan fashion to get a human services budget enacted that allows social service agencies to keep their doors open.

SPRINGFIELD— State Sen. Jennifer Bertino-Tarrant (D-Shorewood) is working this year to ensure that more funding is available for substance abuse treatment initiatives.

Under Bertino-Tarrant’s plan, money taken from drug-related crimes may be used for public education programs in schools and in the community. These programs will focus on preventing students and others from misusing drugs and alcohol.

“It’s important that drug money seized by law enforcement be utilized in a meaningful way,” Bertino-Tarrant said. “One important way it can be used is to help educate our students on the problems associated with abusing drugs and alcohol.”

This legislation is part of a broader effort the senator has undertaken in recent years to combat drug addiction. Bertino-Tarrant served as the co-chairwoman of the Young Adults Heroin Use Task Force and hosted heroin prevention forums in her district. She also supported House Bill 1, a law designed to comprehensively address the significant increase in heroin and opioid related overdoses and deaths over the past 10 years.

Bertino-Tarrant’ proposal, Senate Bill 212, recently passed out of the Illinois Senate. It now advances to the Illinois House for consideration.

SPRINGFIELD — State Sen. Jennifer Bertino-Tarrant (D-Shorewood) issued the following statement after the Illinois Senate approved Senate Bill 2059, which provides short-term funding for public universities, community colleges and Monetary Award Program grants that help middle class students afford college:

I am happy and relieved that the legislature approved funding for higher education that the governor has said he will sign. But there is still more work to be done. I want to see a long-term solution that ensures students in my district don’t have to live in fear of their education being threatened by the dysfunction in Springfield.

It’s also imperative that human services agencies get the funding they need to keep their doors open. Today, I voted for a proposal that included funding for programs that help seniors, the addicted and homeless. We have already gone too long and can’t wait any longer for a human services budget.

Senate Bill 2059 will go to the governor’s desk for final approval. Senate Bill 2047, which included funding for human services, will go to the Illinois House for approval.

SPRINGFIELD— Under current law, prosecution for financial exploitation of an elderly person or a person with a disability must occur within three years of the offense being committed.

State Sen. Jennifer Bertino-Tarrant (D-Shorewood) is trying to extend the statute of limitations for this type of offense.

“Seniors and the disabled aren’t always able to promptly recognize and report when they are being financially exploited, which is why it’s important to increase the timeframe when someone can be prosecuted for these crimes,” Bertino-Tarrant said.

In general, most states allow individuals to be prosecuted for financial exploitation of a senior or disabled person longer than three years after the offense occurred.

Alabama has a statute of limitations of seven years, and in Oregon the statute of limitations is six years. Minnesota recently extended the time period for when someone can be prosecuted for financially exploiting a senior or disabled person.

The plan supported by the senator would increase the statute of limitations for financial exploitation of an elderly person or a person with a disability to seven years in Illinois. This would align with banking laws and regulations that require banks to maintain financial records for seven years.

The proposal Bertino-Tarrant is backing also allows for defendants to be prosecuted for financial exploitation in any county where a victim over 60 or with a mental disability resides. This is important because suspects often live in a different county or state than their victim. Many seniors who have been financially exploited end up being placed in care facilities.

Bertino-Tarrant is the chief co-sponsor of Senate Bill 3180, which passed out of the Illinois Senate today. The legislation will now have to be approved by the Illinois House.